By Your Hand
by Apple Doodle
Summary: She glanced around, staring down the enemies that surrounded her, daring them to strike her down. Daring them to come closer. Of course, Gin obliged. After all, he could never resist that blue-grey stare. Warning: character death.


**Tip: Listen to 'will of the heart' or 'never meant to belong' on the bleach soundtrack as you read this. It adds to the mood. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, nor can I think of something funny to say in my disclaimer message.**

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**By Your Hand**

Ichimaru Gin surveyed the scene before him. Both the ground below and the people surrounding him were drenched in blood, but that was to be expected – this _was_ a battlefield, after all. Even he himself was battered and bloody from his battle with that Kurosaki boy. But he was alive. That was all that mattered, and he had only one thing on his mind.

Gin scanned the scene again, this time finding exactly what he was looking for. What he saw amused him, at the very least. No, it wasn't the blood, or the remains of Karakura town, or even the disembodied limbs that lay scattered about the place - although he _did_ find detached body parts fascinating, as it was fun to guess who they'd belonged to, especially if that person had been a shinigami – but that was not what had now caught Gin's eye. It was the people, or more specifically, the person who had just entered his line of sight. _Her._

Matsumoto Rangiku.

The golden-haired woman was standing tall and proud, newly healed from a previous fight and ready to join the battle once again. She glanced around, her head held high, the demeanour of a lioness, staring down the enemies that surrounded her, daring them to strike her down. Daring them to come closer.

Of course, Gin obliged. After all, he could never resist that blue-grey stare.

He shunpoed to her side so swiftly and silent, she barely noticed him. She did, though. She was a vice-captain, after all. Not many people could sneak up on her unnoticed. And so in a flash, she was facing him, sword drawn.

"Yo, Ran-chan. Lovely day, don't 'ya think?"

"Ichimaru," she growled. Gin dropped his perpetual smile in an attempt to feign hurt.

"Not 'Gin' anymore, then? You've hurt my feelings, bein' so formal."

"No, you're not Gin anymore. You're not the Gin that I grew up with. The Gin that was kind, and gentle. The Gin that saved my life. No. The old Gin is dead. You're Ichimaru, now. The traitor who left us to join that bastard Aizen. The man who abandoned me… Again." There were tears in her eyes, but she tried not to show it.

Gin stepped forward, inching closer to her. With every fabric of his being he wanted to hold her in his arms, and make everything all right again. As kids it had always felt so natural, and she'd happily welcomed his embrace – but not today. Today she smoothly slipped away, her eyes hard, and cold, and burning with hate. And although she didn't know it, that hurt a million times more than her scolding words, or the sword still firmly aimed at his chest. So of course, to ease the pain, Gin did the only thing he knew how – he re-plastered his twisted old grin, and turned the whole thing into a joke.

"Too old for a little cuddle, ne? Aw, don't be like that, Ran-chan. We used to hug each other all the time when we were kids, remember?"

"Shut up!" But it was as he inched closer once again that her patience ran out.

"I hate you!" she roared. "Growl Haineko!" She released her shikai, sending a cloud of deadly ash flying towards the man she hated so.

Gin was so shocked at her sudden outburst, that he almost didn't dodge her attack, but the would-be fatal barrage of ask just skimming the tip of his nose brought him to his senses. This was a battle – they were supposed to fight, not play happy families. And by the end of it all, one of them would be dead. What fun!

He released his own shikai, just so he could get a good few well-aimed shots past Haineko's wide defence. But of course, he wasn't shooting to kill (rather contrary to his zanpakutou's trigger phrase). He hardly ever did that. No, Ichimaru Gin loved to play with his opponents. After all, life was just a game, right?

But after a few purposely missed shots, and constant dodging, Gin was loosing the will to play. Sure, it was fun purely because Rangiku was so serious about killing him, so he could easily hop around without getting a scratch, throwing torments at her and laughing at her reaction. But not today. Today, messing with Rangiku felt wrong, like there was something different. Like it was the end of something.

He suddenly stopped, and turned to look her in the eyes for the last time, knowing that if the game was coming to an end, then he would have to cut the nonsense and kill her. His perpetual smile wavered slightly at the thought. But then, he looked into her eyes. Really _looked_. And all he could see was the little girl he'd saved all those years ago, and the happy, joyful, golden woman she'd grown up to become, and he knew he wouldn't, _couldn't_ destroy her.

Because underneath the little girl, in those eyes he saw all the pain he'd caused her. Never. He would never harm a hair on that girls head ever again. He had hurt her for the last time.

He knew what he had to do.

As she stabbed out towards him, he shunpoed to side and whispered a single sentence in her ear:

"If it's by your hand…"

He then shunpoed back to exactly where he had been moments before, right in the path of Rangiku's blade.

There came the muffled, gut-wrenching sound of metal piercing flesh, then bone, then… silence. Matsumoto couldn't believe what she was seeing. Gin was on the other end of her sword, blood flowing freely from the wound in his chest, staining his perfect white uniform a startling crimson. Yet he was still smiling at her. It wasn't the creepy grin he always wore though, this was different. This time he was smiling his real smile, the secret smile he kept hidden away and once in a blue moon, would show it to her and only her.

"Why?" she whispered, the tears flowing freely now.

"Why? 'Cause I'm done with bein' a coward… An' done with hurtin' you," he coughed, blood trickling from his half-open mouth. Suddenly, he paled and crumpled, falling off the end of her sword.

But Gin didn't hit the floor. As he looked up, he realised he was in the arms of an angel. Because Rangiku was an angel; with that golden hair, and golden smile, and golden… everything. Gin thought Rangiku was golden, and as he lay, finally in her embrace, he realised he was happy.

"Better late than never on the hug front, ne, Ran-chan?" he said, his voice barely audible.

"Yeah," she whispered. "Better late than never."

And then Gin did something Rangiku had rarely, if not never seen him do – he opened his eyes wide, and took in every little detail of her beauty, adamant that she be the last thing he saw. But those rarely-opened eyes soon glazed over, and the silver-haired man took his final breath, before falling limp in his Ran-chan's arms.

She didn't cry out, or scream at his passing. She simply let the tears roll silently down her face. The idiot. He'd left her, again. Matsumoto Rangiku sighed, and stared down at the face before her.

She thought it was ironic, really, that while most people died with their eyes closed, Ichimaru Gin had died with his eyes wide open.

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**I killed Gin! I'm so mean! ...ehem. The reason for this fanfic is simply I woke up this morning wanting to write a fanfic about Gin, so here it is! Yay! I love Gin! He's my favourite character.**

**Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW!!!**


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